Trudeau fails to win election with majority

Canadian prime minister ‘messed up’ by going to polls during a pandemic as coalition beckons

JUSTIN TRUDEAU’S expected coalition partner told the prime minister he “messed up” after calling an election criticised by many as unnecessary and hinted he will pull Canada to the Left in exchange for support to form a government.

Mr Trudeau, leader of the ruling Liberal Party, has been widely criticised for calling the “unnecessary” 610million Canadian dollar (£350million) election which left the country’s balance of power largely unchanged.

The 49-year-old managed to cling to a third term in power with the Liberals taking 158 seats – just one more than they won in 2019 – and short of the 170 needed for a majority.

Looking relieved, Mr Trudeau claimed the race, called two years early, had given him a “clear mandate” for a “progressive plan” in a victory speech from Montreal early yesterday.

But the bruising election campaign, the most expensive in Canadian history, has left the prime minister chastened and jeopardised the stable minority government he led through the pandemic with the cooperation of other political parties.

During the 36-day race, Jagmeet Singh, leader of the Left-wing New Democratic Party (NDP), had accused Mr Trudeau of undermining the trust of his partners in parliament and suggested the prime minister could not be relied on to pass a progressive agenda.

“Everything I said is true,” said a defiant Mr Singh, whose NDP has secured 24 seats. “I’m going to go back [to parliament] and say, ‘You messed up, but that doesn’t mean we can’t work to get things done for Canadians’.”

He hinted he would demand further concessions in exchange for the NDP’S continued support of the Liberals, saying he had outlined his “priorities” to Mr Trudeau when the two leaders spoke yesterday. “If Mr Trudeau wants to help people, we are prepared to support him, but if he introduces a measure that will hurt people then he can ask for support from Conservatives but not from us,” he added.

The result suggests there will be little change in approach from the Liberals, who racked up record levels of debt through increased federal spending during the pandemic.

Mr Trudeau, who has promised tens of billions of dollars in new investments, will once again rely on the support of the NDP, who want even more social spending. “If he thinks he can threaten Canadians with another election in 18 months, the Conservative Party will be ready,” he said.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Ken Boessenkool, a former Conservative strategist, suggested the “headaches” that faced Mr Trudeau’s minority government will have left the prime minister questioning his future.

“He’s going to look at what’s coming and say it’s worth stepping down,” he said. “There will be lots of headaches with a minority government. I don’t know if he’s got the stomach for that.”

The mood was muted at the Liberals’ election night party, where a small group of mask-clad supporters appeared more relieved than pleased as they hugged each other when the results came in.

In a call for unity, Mr Trudeau told the country: “Some have talked about division, but that’s not what I see. I see Canadians standing together... and our team, our government, is ready.”

At the Liberals’ election party, engineer Ngakeng Serge struck an upbeat note as he said Mr Trudeau’s progressive agenda would “change Canada” for decades to come. “I’m feeling great even though it’s a minority government,” said Sarra Azouz, a 27-year-old healthcare worker who insisted the election was “needed to gather support” for the road to recovery.